St. Landry democrat., 1887-10-08


beauty of person which caused the
oS'l gravest errors as to his origin and
fortune The officers thought he was ofsome
superior family, brought into the field as a
correspondent by his literary nature and
indispoeition to be ruled according to the
| tight discipline of mixed regular and vol
unteer service.
In point of fact, he had been rejected by
the board of military examination of his
native State when he applied for an officer 8
commission, as both too young and too
defective in vital strength. So he had come
into the army as not of it, merely a news
paper attendant, and his wounded pride gave
| a touch of haughtiness to his bearing which
increased his extraordinary personal beauty,
while those who had the delicacy to gain
| his confidence found that womanly spirit
| of wit, joyousness and chivalry resided
there in bonds of some kind which
made him the sincerest sympathy. They
were the balls and chains which con-
fined the Golden Quill.
He had no other resort for his livelihood
than by his pen, and graceful as that pen
was, it worked slow and painfully upon the
lightning rod Of high mettle, real poverty
and slender physique.
He and his sister inherited an affection Of
the spine from a hunchback father, while
brother and sister drew from a beautiful
mother, who was of French descent, hair and
eyes dark and piercing, yet soft, and eye
brows that were like the wings Of black
birds. A mustache of black further gave
rich expression to Euphorian's brunette
skin; his spine was straight and the more
slender and graceful from its delicacy Of dis
eased origin, but bis sisters spine caused her
to be under the frequent treatment of the
surgeon, and Euphorian paid the bills.
This sister. to add to his pangs, had mar
ried, yielding to the ardent affections which
they both inherited, and by her marriage
was the more helpless and dependent.
His father was incapacitated by his disease
from doing other work than keeping news
paper and book stand in public place in a
large city, whence Euphorian had obtained
his first employment as a child in news
paper office in some humble situation, and
so rose to be a reporter and ultimately a
special correspondent.
Fettered thus by origin and imperfect edu-
cation, every triumph he obtained was the
result of hard toll and midnight application,
until the great civil war released him from
the captivity and annoyance of managing
editors DESK to come abroad and take the
exercise and adventure of the long and doubt
full war.
In the open air of river and of mountains
his health improved; he broke the barriers
of obscurity and gained an enviable name.
There was no disparity in his engagement
to D6fis Mott if he could maintain himself
in the reputation he had won; for Doris,
though tenderly educated and of an excel
lent family, had no other property expecta-
tons than at the ultimate division Of mod
crate estate among many children, of whom
she was the eldest daughter.
Euphorian, therefore, was, like the Golden
Quill pierced by the cruel rod of prominence
and pain, and held naked to the thunder
bolts of gathering cloud and storm.
At the conclusion Of the war he had made
repeated efforts to expand his career.
Rich patrons had sent him to view and ex-
plot distant mines and diamond fields.
Too honorable to use his pen in deceiving
innocent investors and the public, he had
Indignantly renowned such dubious pur-
suits by which some lawyers, financiers and
bankers added to their swollen stores.
These, respecting the honest man, though
they failed to use him to their advantage,
next sent him to Europe with the scapegrace
son of one of them whom it was comfortable
to be rid of.
Here Euphorian had the prospect of
several years of leisure and cultivation at
sufficient salary, but he soon found that the
low appetite, public misconduct and over
bearing insolepce of his pupil were such as
no self-respectlng mind could endure.
He returned the scapegrace to his family
and resumed his slavery upon the public
press.
The all-night work of large daily paper
owned by sharpers and schemers now broke
down his health through his lofty and
wounded honor.
A friend better adapted to newspaper
tasks, with more endurance and earning
power, had invited him to the mountains to
recuperate and here Euphorian fell in love.
1t was the last despair of all-the worse
that he could not resist it.
Doris golden hair and skin to match, so
white that the sun drew out the defects of
its texture without affecting its bloom, and
her large gray eyes full Of wondering love
that she had found favor so instantly in the
sight of this copy of Adonis or Decatur, were
natural to be admired by brunette like En-
phorian, whose fine expressive head and
dramatic features stood six feet above the
ground and were crowned with the ringlets
of another Julius Cesar.
Alas! that all outside being of such glory,
and the mind within SO tender and radiant
the conditions of subsistence were so unto
| ward, and the worm lay in the manly tree
Fastening it to decay.
He was no pulling lover, magnifying the
obligations of marriage. His necessities